Highway guard



Aug. 2l, 1934. w. s. EDGE HIGHWAY GUARD Filedmpril 5, 19.32

2 sheets-shea 1 W INVEN; @f

III Ill-II :MIMI

Aug. 2l, 1.934, w. s. EDGE HIGHWAY GUARD Fil ed;April 5. 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 w m4 w w.

M E /Z f s ma@55555555555 p Patented Aug. 214, l1934 UNITED STATI-:s

PAT

ENT oFFrc a claim. (ci. zas-13.1)

My invention relates to highway guards, such as are employed 'as fences or deilectors to prevent vehicles leaving the roadway, on bridges, embankments, or at curves.

One object of my invention is to provide a guard structure that possesses a maximum capacity of resistance Afor a given weight of material.'

Another object of my invention vis to provide a guard structure that is'highly yieldable, and can be deflected to a greater extent than various types of guards heretofore employed, without perma. nentdeformation of the guard strip.

Another object of my invention is to provide a guard structure of such form that itwill nor` mally remain taut notwithstanding repeated changes in temperature.

Still another object of my invention is to provide an improved form of anchoring means for the ends of the guard members.

A further object of my invention is to provide an improved form of yielding buffer support for guard bands.

Another object of my invention is to provide a guard band or strip of improved form, and an improved manner of connecting the same to supporting posts or-the like.

Some of the vforms which my invention may take are shownsin the accompanying drawings wherein Figure 1 is a face view of a portion of a guard structure; Fig. 2 is an end view thereof, on an enlarged scale; Fig. 3 is a view taken on the line III--III of Fig. .2; Fig. 4 shows a modification of the structurev of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 shows a sectional plan view of the structure of Fig. 4; Fig. 6 shows another modification of the anchoring means for'the ends of the guard members; Fig. I is a perspective view, on an enlarged scale, of a portion of the structure of Fig. 1; Fig. 8 is a sectional plan view thereof; Fig. 9 shows oneof the buflersprings which I employ, and Fig. l0 is a perspective view of another form of a buffer spring.

The structure is shown as composed of a ban like strip of mesh 10 that is supported on posts 1l and l2, which are sunk into the ground or anchored in concrete bases, the end posts 12 being provided with anchor rods 13'having turn buckles 14 for tightening the same in a manner wellknown in the art.

The band 10 is shown as composed of strand wires 15 which are preferably of spring steel so that they will have considerable elasticity and can be deflected to a greater degree than ordinaryl iron wire, without becoming permanently distort..

ed. The wires 15 are united in unitary relation by stay wires 16 which may be either of iron or of spring steel. The strand wires 15 alternately pass in front of and behind the stay wires 16, but do not have set bends formedtherein at the points where they cross the stay wires. The stay wires 16y on the other hand are preferably prebent at the points shown in the drawings to form oifset seats for the strand wires 15.

'Ihis arrangement not only reduces tendency of 05 the strand wires 15 to slide vertically on the stay wires but also avoids the necessity of bending the strand wires to such degree thatthe bends become set. In other-words, if the stay wires 16 were removed,lthe strand wires would, tend to assume straight lines.

In place of some of the wires 15, I employ wires 17 that may be-of irn instead of spring steel, and somewhat thicker than the wires 15. These wires 1'1 are welded to the stay wires, and thereby 75 hold the stay wires against slipping when the mesh body is hit with a glancing blow b y a vehicle. The wires 15 are preferably not welded to the stay wires because such welding would injuriously affect their strength and yielding qualities, and i furthermore ,v would rigidly hold them against shifting lengthwise of'themselves' relative to the stay wires.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the wires 15 and 17 pass around a metal plate 18 that is secured to 85 the corner of the end post 12, and the ends of such wires extend through diametral holes in adiusting pins or bolts 19, which are mounted on an angle plate 21 that is secured tothe end post 12. The pins are shouldered as at 22, and their shank portions, of reduced diameter, extend through the barv 21. When nuts 23 are screwed up, the shoulders 22 are clamped tightly against` the-bar 21,v so that the pins 19 are frictionally held against turning. However, the pins can be turned by a wrench applied to their outer ends to wind the wires thereon. and maintain said wires taut.- This taut condition is more eilectively maintained by reason of the individual anchoring of the wires than if the wires were all connected as a unit by a single clamp.

In Figs. 4 and 5, the strand wires 15 extend through holes in the flange 24 oi an anchoring plate 25, and their ends are upset. The wires may be inserted into the aange 24, after the flange is in place, the said wires being individually maintained under tension, while upsetting or rivetingi their ends, or they may be connected to the iiange 24 and the plate 25 then drawn into position on the post 'and bolted thereto.

In Fig. 6, I have shown the strand wires as 26, with the ends of the strands upset to securely anchor them to the bar. This work may be done at the factory, and the mesh with the bars 26 -attached brought to the place of installation, the bars 26 being fastened to the angles 25a by means of bolts 26a, the nuts of the bolts being drawn up to place the mesh under the tension desired.

Referring to Figs. 7 and 8i, I show the manner in which the band 10 is connected to the intermediate posts 11. This connecting means includes a bar 27, preferably of channel form, that is bolted to the post. A coil spring 28 is held in position on the post by the bar 27, the bar being provided with transverse grooves to receive turns of the spring 28, and the upper and lower ends of the spring 28 being turned inwardly as at 29, to prevent the spring creeping or rotating about its axis. The axis of the spring is on a vertical line, and the spring is of approximately oval form when viewed in plan or horizontal cross section, instead of being of cylindrical contour as is com# mon in coil springs. Of course, the springs as a whole may be of cylindrical contour, but the oval form may be preferred, for the reasons hereinafter set forth. Also, the stock of which the spring is formed maybe of either rectangular cross section or cylindrical.

A clamping bar 31 is disposed within the spring adjacent to the outer or front side thereof, and a clamping plate 32 is held in place by bolts 33 which draw the plate 32 and the bar 31 together to clamp them firmly on the spring 28. The bolts 33`also retain an outer clamping. plate 34 in position to hold the wire band 10 securely against the plate 32.

The plate 32 is provided with beads or ribs 35 at'its edges that serve as curved bearing surfaces for the strands 15, and also cause deflection of such strands By this means the band is deflected in a horizontal direction across the entire vertical width thereof, so that it forms a curve on either side of the clamp connecting the said straight portion to the band. When the band contracts through lowering of temperature, these curves tend to straighten out, but when the temperature rises, the spring quality of the wire restores the curves and keeps the band taut.

While the wires 15 and 16 may be of any suitable gauge and spacing, depending upon conditions to be met, I have shown the wires 15 as b eing of approximately 8 gauge-and spaced apart H inches center-to-center, while the stay wires 16. if em- 'standing the repeated changes in temperature as `between summer weather and winter weather.

The springs 28 also assist in'maintaining the wires uniformly taut throughout their lengths. That is, there will not be a tendencyv for overtension between two posts 11, and sagging between two adjacent' posts.

Furthermore, the springs 28 serve to transmit the stresses of impact throughout the length of the band, and also serve as cushioning elements when impact is had against the structure at points adjacent to the posts.

The oval or elliptical form of the springs 28 facilitates movement of the outer sides of the springs in directions longitudinally of the mesh when pressure is exerted on the mesh at points between the posts, thereby readily transmitting stresses from the section between two posts to the other posts and increasing the elasticity of the structure as a whole. For example, in a structure wherein the posts are 16 feet apart, the mesh may be deflected laterally as much as 2 ft. at points between the posts, and will nevertheless return to its original position. The resistance to deflection, of course, increases rapidly as the degree of deflection increases, and the mesh is capable of absorbing very great stresses, as compared to mesh structures of ordinary wire, and those wherein special provision is not made for transmitting the stresses from one section to another.

In Fig. 10, I have shown a spring 28a which may be utilized instead of the helical coil 28, such spring consisting of a band whose rear ends are bolted to the posts l1 by a clamping bar or by bolts extending directly through the holes in the rear side of the spring. The mesh would be fastened to the front side of the spring by suitable clamping plates, such as 3l, 34l and 35, and' bolts 33. ,The springs 28a can be of any axial spring is desired, or a series of narrow bands 28a.

It will be understood that various features of my invention such as the springs 28 and 28a, and the clamping members, as Well as the anchoring means at 25 and 25a are applicable also to guard bands consisting of sheet metal or spring steel bands, instead of wire mesh.

- I claim as my invention:-

1. A guard fence comprising a support, an impact-receiving band, a helically-wound spring secured at one side to said support, with its axis approximately vertical, and means for securing the band tothe other side of said spring.

2. Aguard fence comprising a support, an impact-receiving band, a helically-wound spring secured at one side to said support, with its axis approximately vertical, and means for securing `the band to the other side of said spring, the

its axis. ployed singly may be of 9 gauge, and if mounted 3. A guard fence comprising posts, a wire mesh having strand. wires extending in horizontal directions, a spring of approximately annular form having its axis vertically disposed, means for securing the rear side of said spring to one of the supports, a bar disposed within said spring, adjacent to the outer side thereof, a clamping plate against the outermost surface of the spring and secured to said bar, the said plate having vertically-extendingbeads adjacent to its edges, and an outer clamping plate overlying the wire and holding the same against the outer face of the second-named clamping plate, and of such narrow width as to deect the wire into the space between the said beads. WALTER S. EDGE. 

